State prosecutor releases report on 2007 Ain Alaq bombings
State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza released on Monday evening the results of his inquiry into the 2007 twin bus bombing in the Ain Alaq region, eastern Beirut. Mirza filed charges against the fugitive leader of the Fatah al-Islam group Shaker al-Abssi, and four Syrians, Mustapha Siyou, Farid Nassan, Yasser Shuqayri and Ghazi Nassan for plotting for the bombing and for the “intentional” murder of innocent civilians.
On Tuesday, February 13, 2007, a bomb exploded on a bus transporting 26 people from Bteghrine to the Lebanese mountain village of Ain Alaq. A second bus following behind stopped, and then a bomb on that bus exploded. Three people were killed including Michel Attar, Laurice Gemayel and Mahmoud Hammoud, an
Egyptian laborer, and 21 others were wounded.
Mirza mentioned in his report that the team lead by assassinated Internal Security Forces Captain Wissam Eid made “precious contributions to uncover assailants.”
Eid was assassinated in a car bombing in the Beirut suburb of Hazmieh early in January.
The Ain Alaq bombings occurred on the eve of a rally planned to commemorate the two-year anniversary of the assassination of former Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri, assassinated on February 14, 2005. The bombing occurred less than a mile from the Christian village of Bikfaya, the hometown of former president Amin Gemayel, whose son Pierre Gemayel, a Cabinet minister and member of the anti-Syrian March 14 coalition was assassinated by gunmen in November.
On March 14, 2007, Lebanese Internal Security arrested four Syrians who confessed to the bombings in Ain Alaq. Interior Minister Hassan al-Sabaa believed that the four Syrians were members of a radical Palestinian group, Fatah al-Islam, which allegedly has close ties to the Syrian intelligence agency. However, it was still not clear who actually ordered the attack. Syria denied the Lebanese allegations.
On June 21, 2007, Mirza filed charges against 16 Fatah al-Islam suspects accused of carrying out the bombings.
Nine of the 16 suspects accused were in custody when the charges were filed; others including Fatah al-Islam leader Shakker al-Abssi were still being sought.
Abssi remains at large to date.